The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1887-05-04
Anarchy vs., Law.

''Defying the people, the Florida Herald
enunciates some peculiar doctrines. The
charge that some of the Perry organs
have been using such expressions a.
''shall the mob rule etc, may be true,
but none such have caught our eye.
We doubt very much the ability of the
Herald to quote such expressions from
any of Perrys supporters, even as a posi-
tive misstatement is made when our con-
temporary declares The people are
speaking and their voice with one ac-
cord goes up for Gov. Bloxham." There
has been no attempt to manufacture pop
ular enthusiasm or transitory ebullitions
of heated feeling for Perry. We leave
monopoly of such business to the Biloxi
ham men-we have too much respect for
our representatives in Tallahassee To sup
pose that their minds can he influenced
by any such silly performances.
But when the Herald insists that 1.-THE
people shall rule" it certainly raises a
question before which the Senatorial
election will pale its Intellectual fires.
Not the people, bm the lar must ruIe.
government-long may they continue to-
do SO. But once made, the law must be-
obeyed alike by the people, the legisia-
| tors who put it on the statute books and
| the criminal who would exhaust his
! feeble strength in the attempt to- break
down the restraints which contine
his wandering desires. The law alone
premacy of the peoples will would be
anarchy as surely as the government of
one man would he monarchical. This is
republic and not a democracy g,ny
more than mobocracy or an aristocra-
cy or n plutocracy. And he who
! teaches the people that they
may assert their will outside IF law and
contrary to its provisions is not their
| friend; his arts are those of a dema-
gogue and his advice is dangerous. The
| law guarantees to all the right of re-
monstrance, the expression of opinion
and of orderly meeting in public. If
| the exercise of any of these rights will
avail, no objection is made to their use
in the interest of MIR. Bloxham.
But the law of the United States pre-
scribes the mode which shall obtain in
electing Federal Senator, and the peo-
| Pile can no more arrogate to themselves
this power than the President can levy
war or the Senate can impose taxes. 1t
is entirely silly to build up fallacious ar
gument or sophistical defamation on
any such basis. To mislead the people
| consciously is a great crime, and we are
| sure that the zeal of Brother Graves has
led him too far. and that he will prompt
| " regain the solid footing familiar to
him. Neither the laborer nor the million
aire, the soldier nor the statesman must
| lose reverence for law if our Govern
ment is 20 stand and our prosperity en-
dure Anarchy will always meet Il
| Waterloo as decisive as she found in
| Chicago.
| The law declares that the Federal
Senators shall be elected by the Legisla-
lures of the respective States. The Biox-
| ham men betray lack of sense as well as
| lack of principle when they would rele-
| gate this important duty to other hands.
ne Iountitfs OF our EUNtIiiuieil gave
us the Federal Senate with the avowed
| purpose of furnishing conservative bal
ance to the varying moods of the tickle
| people This idea has become fixed in
all our state constitutions, and when the
| legislatures fail to elect senator
the place is filled not by refer
ence to the people but by appointment.
No State convention or assemblage of
citizens can assume the discharge of a
| function expressly reserved from them
| and lodged in the hands of the represen-
tatives for a specific purpose and for a
reason which formed foundation stone
in the construction of our plan of govern
ment If the people rule 1t can only be
through the operation of laws equally
binding ON all. Popular opinion is often
more powerful than the law and some
| times overrides decisions from the bench,
but this alone furnishes an excep-
| ton which proves the rule. The law
would bind the whole people as firmly as
| the isolated criminal, and no aggregation
| of numbers could excuse a breach of the
| constitution or even of the statute law.